MOSCOW, August 20. /TASS/. The number of Indian tourists visiting Russia increased by a quarter in the first six months of 2025, Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov said at a meeting of the Russian-Indian intergovernmental commission.

According to him, active intercultural exchange is driving steady growth in mutual tourist flows. "The growing interest in Russia among Indian citizens is especially remarkable. In the first six months of the current year, the number of Indian tourists visiting our country has risen by a quarter," Manturov noted.

Education and culture

The deputy prime minister also reported that the number of Indian students in Russia has grown sevenfold over the past decade, surpassing 30,000. This, Manturov said, underscores the importance of accelerating the decision on mutual recognition of diplomas. "One of the pressing tasks is to facilitate the procedure for mutual recognition of educational documents and degrees. We consider it necessary to speed up preparations for the signing of a relevant intergovernmental agreement," he stressed. Russia and India are also exploring opportunities to align their vocational college programs.

As for cultural cooperation, Manturov highlighted the upcoming exhibition at Moscow’s GES-2 cultural center in November, dedicated to the legacy of Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941). Next year, India will host a festival dedicated to Russian culture.

In addition, he said that a Russian-Indian film titled "Pearl" is scheduled for release this fall as part of joint film production efforts.